Kombucha Instructions

Kombucha tea recipe, modifiable to preference:

1 SCOBY
6 c water
1 c sugar
3 bags tea
1/2 to 1 c starter

Instructions:

1. Bring 1/3 of the water to simmer in a pot.
2. Add all tea to the water. Brew. If you are using black tea, let it steep up to 15 minutes.
3. Squeeze out the teabags, remove from water.
4. Add all sugar to the water. Stir until dissolved.
5. Pour simmering sweet tea into the remaining water, which should be chilled. This saves time.
6. Transfer this into a wide-mouth jar. Kombucha likes surface area, so you want a high width-to-height ratio.
7. Make sure that the water is not hot, no warmer than blood temperature. Add starter and mother.
8. Cover with tight-woven fabric or paper towels. Secure this with a rubber band or hair tie. Do not secure it with a lid, because it will collect condensation and and host bacteria.
9. Note the date.
10. Wait 5-11 days, depending on the temperature. In the summer, 8 days should be sufficient. Try not to disturb the Kombucha during this time, and do not expose it to direct sunlight or UV light.
11. Check the SCOBY after a few days. A general indicator of the brew's status is the SCOBY. Once the newly formed SCOBY is nearly opaque and about 1/5" thick, perform the long-anticipated taste test. Without disturbing the culture too much, sip the Kombucha with a straw. It may have settled somewhat, so try to taste the bottom.
12. Strain the Kombucha, bottle, and refrigerate. Start anew. If a new SCOBY has formed on top of the existing SCOBY, see if you can gently peel them apart. If not, see if you can after the next batch.

Optional steps:

1. When you bottle the kombucha, fill the bottle as much as you can, and top it with an airlock or balloon instead of a bottlecap. Let it sit unrefrigerated. This will reduce the sugar content without increasing acidity, and will result in a drier Kombucha. The Kombucha will create CO2 during this stage, which will inflate the balloon (or be indicated on the airlock).
2. This stage can be drawn out for as long as desired, so long as your balloon doesn't pop. I usually stop it once the balloon is about halfway inflated.

SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast), mother, or mushroom:

• This fleshy beige membrane is a factory which converts sweet tea into Kombucha, and given enough time, Kombucha vinegar. They reproduce by themselves, forming new SCOBY babies on the surface of the Kombucha tea. If the SCOBY mother is already floating on the surface, then the SCOBY baby will form on the surface of the SCOBY mother.
• Bubbles may form in your SCOBY. This is normal, as it contains yeast.
• Fresh SCOBY membrane is light in colour, and as the yeast cells die, they turn brown and flake off. These dead flakes are a great source of nutrition for the Kombucha, and can be transferred from batch to batch.
• You can slice and dice SCOBYs any way you like without hurting them too much. However, a circular SCOBY floats better and is prettier is general.

Water:

• Tap water is safe, though you may opt to use softer purified water.

Sugar:

• Granulated sugar is fine, as are any raw analogues such as turbinado. You may substitute the sugar carefully by measuring out and equivalent portion of fructose, agave, syrup, or fruit juice which is high in sugar. Do not use citrus fruit juice.
• Honey (especially raw honey) is a probiotic and may result in a longer and more unpredictable brew.

Tea:

• Like all ingredients, the quality of the tea will match the quality of your Kombucha. That noted, tea is the most expensive ingredient when bought in bulk. You can buy 100 ct boxes of black tea bags for as low as $2.00 in chain supermarkets, which will suit most amateur brewers fine.
• If you are to use herbal teas, note that caffeine stimulates the Kombucha brewing process, and thus it the duration of the brew will be lengthened without the presence of caffeine.
• Do not use Earl Grey tea, as it contains bergamot oil, which is derived from a citrus fruit and is not well liked by the SCOBY.

Starter:

• This will give the Kombucha a headstart in the brewing process. Starter refers to any established Kombucha tea. The more acidic the starter, the less you will need to use. You may opt at some point to keep a continuously brewing batch of Kombucha to use as a dedicated starter.
• If you do not have a starter, or do not want to sacrifice any of your precious kombucha tea, you can substitute 1/2 c Starter with 1 tbsp Braggs apple cider vinegar.

Sterility notes:

• Throw out moldy Kombucha as soon as you can confirm that it is actually moldy. It will appear fuzzy brown or green. Start over.
• Wash your hands.
• Do not use dirty utensils or bowls in preparation.
• Do not smoke, spraypaint, or otherwise create air pollution around Kombucha.